Cellular phones have developed to include a variety of different enhanced features, enabling the phone to be a useful device for a variety of purposes other than merely wireless communications. When such a phone includes a display and has the capability to access information from the internet, it is generally referred to as a “smartphone.” Examples of such cellular phones which are also capable of accessing the internet include the iPhone line of cell phones from Apple, Inc. of Cupertino, Calif. and the Galaxy line of cell phones from Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. of Korea.
Other devices which are similar to these internet accessing cellular phones include cellular phones which might not access the internet but otherwise have other features thereon, especially including a camera built into the cell phone and the ability to transmit the photos by email, an SMS service or otherwise. Still other devices which are similar in many respects to multi-feature cell phones but which do not include cellular telephone equipment therein. An example of such a device would be an iPod from Apple, Inc. which includes a camera. For convenience in this description all such personal electronic devices are generally referred to by the term “smartphone.”
One important attribute of any such device within this smartphone description is that the smartphone have a camera built into the device which can take either still images, video or both. Various different features of this camera are supplied by hardware within the smartphone including a lens, some form of aperture and some form of shutter to activate and deactivate the camera. The shutter could be mechanical where it physically blocks or allows light to impact light sensors within the camera hardware or could be electronic, such as in the form of light sensing devices being activated or deactivated or other portions of electronics within the camera being powered or unpowered in response to the shutter.
Other portions of this camera operating on the smartphone are enabled within software running on the smartphone. For instance, a display on the smartphone typically acts as a view finder to show a user what picture is about to be taken. Software operating on the smartphone delivers a signal to the display to cause the appropriate image to appear on the display. Other features such as a zoom feature can be enabled either by buttons on the smartphone or through interaction with software through the display if it is in the form of a touch screen display. Other forms of inputs could also conceivably be utilized for control of the camera.
When taking pictures or video with a smartphone it is often desirable to have a camera angle which is spaced from the user. For instance, when taking a self-portrait it is desirable to have the camera positioned a little further away than arm's length. Also, if the user is screened to some extent from an event taking place, such as by others in front of the user, the user benefits from elevating the smartphone above the user's head to take the desired pictures or video. In other instances, a better overall perspective is provided when the camera is elevated higher above ground or located low to the ground or reaching laterally around corners or other obstacles.
The extent to which the smartphone can be remotely located and operated is limited by the height of the user and the length of the user's arms. This amount is often insufficient for the user to place the smartphone in the most optimal position. Furthermore, and especially when taking video, a user can become fatigued when holding the smartphone at a distance away from one's body for a prolonged period of time. Accordingly, a need exists for a better system for placing and holding a smartphone in an optimal position when utilizing the smartphone for taking still pictures or video.
In the camera accessory arts, it is known to support a camera on a distal end of a telescopic rod or pole by using a screw member interfacing with a camera's tripod screw hole or similar mounting thread. For instance, see U.S. Pat. No. 4,530,580 to Ueda or U.S. Pat. No. 8,002,480 to Polster, each incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Such camera supports are not effective in supporting smartphones which do not have a tripod screw hole or similar mounting thread. Accordingly, a need exists for a smartphone accessory which can securely grip a smartphone at a distal end of an elongate pole and facilitate the use of the smartphone when spaced from a user by a length of such a pole.